


Ars Moriendi

by TwilightMaster15



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Aftermath, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Break Up, Depression, Execution, Family Drama, Family Issues, Gen, Heavy Angst, Leaving Home
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-27
Updated: 2020-10-27
Packaged: 2021-03-08 20:33:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,370
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27222793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TwilightMaster15/pseuds/TwilightMaster15
Summary: There are some things money can help you escape in the legal system. Threatening nuclear war and becoming an international terrorist is not one of these things. That is something Gabriel Agreste learned the hard way.But Adrien is the one with the consequences and the aftermath of his father's execution and its effect on the world and his relationships.
Comments: 5
Kudos: 38





	Ars Moriendi

Adrien tightly clamped his hands over his ears as he waited patiently, hearing whether from his mind or otherwise, the outraged screams of Paris' citizens. He wouldn't be surprised if Alya was the loudest of them all, wanting nothing more than to get the biggest scoop of her journaling career.

In the end, the victims were far too many to fit inside this tiny room, which made the hair on the back of Adrien's neck stand on end. Therefore, it had been agreed that only Adrien was allowed inside. This was much to the fury of everyone who wanted this to be a public affair.

He looked down at the mark on his hand, a band where the ring used to be as he had never taken it off in the years he had had it, so most of his skin had tanned except for a single pale area. He quickly shooed away the thoughts of what had once been, knowing what he would see today was going to change his future forever.

Nadia Chamack had tried to force her way into the building a few times since press coverage was normal for these kinds of events. But not this time. Perhaps it was the one thing Adrien could thank Ladybug—thank Marinette, the woman who ruined his life because her friend wanted the scoop—for keeping the press away when he needed to be alone.

For a couple weeks, he tried to think of reasons why she had gone against their agreement to keep Hawk Moth's identity a secret. Was it because she was genuinely worried? Or was there an ulterior motive he was going to see?

 _"We weren't supposed to know our identities,"_ her words echoed in his mind, and he clawed at his head to try and keep the painful memories back, _"I am the guardian, so it is my duty to remain with my Miraculous, but you can no longer have yours. Adrien Agreste, please surrender the Miraculous of the Cat."_

He wanted Plagg to be here, maybe to have somebody to hold onto for this. Felix had offered to come as moral support, but Aunt Amelie refused to let him go as a form of petty revenge for Adrien being forbidden from going to her husband's funeral.

He stared out at the window in front of him, where a curtain prevented him from seeing anything. Of all the times he had been to America, never would he have imagined this to be the reason.

Money could buy your way out of a lot, but threatening nuclear war to get magic jewelry was not one of them.

At that moment, Gabriel Agreste, better known as Hawk Moth, had made himself viable for the American Death Penalty as an international criminal.

It had been a messy trial, and Adrien to this day could not comprehend Rena Rouge, Carapace, and Ladybug herself testifying even when they had all agreed before to keep this on the down-low.

Nobody had known what to make of it when Chat Noir never appeared, and he still remembered Ladybug making offhand snide comments about his lack of appearance until he confronted her and revealed himself. Because how dare she did this to him when they had all agreed that this was not the right thing to do, and Gabriel was harmless without the Miraculous.

When she learned who he was, she instantly dropped her own mask and begged his forgiveness and trying to say she knew what was best for him, but the damage had been done. He had not spoken to her since she had taken his ring from him. He sometimes wondered if Marinette had taken Plagg away because he no longer worshipped her like she believed she deserved.

During the trial, he had moved to London, and his Aunt was now his guardian until he turned eighteen in a few months. Or perhaps years. It would take a long time to get back on his feet.

Gabriel had sold everything to pay off the fines and try to stay out of prison, or at least keep Nathalie out of jail. He even blew Adrien's college funds, and they could no longer even keep his Mom alive in the hospital on life support for whatever condition she had.

The Agreste name was shunned. Adrien himself only had plenty of money because Child Protective Services had made sure he had been given the money for all the hours he had worked endlessly to keep his father happy. He knew he would be well-off for a while financially if he was wise with his money, but that was assuming his family stayed out of it.

A year now, since the arrest, since losing everything. Three weeks ago, Adrien had gotten the call of the day of his father's execution, and he found himself obligated to attend.

The viewing room was small. It would probably fit twenty people tops if they were going to get comfortable. But Adrien was alone, humming Clair de Lune softly, reminding himself of the vow he had taken before he walked into the building.

_You do not cry._

He had done all the research. He had envisioned every single excruciating detail, every apology he may receive but did not want. Maybe he was fine with what Marinette did to betray him—it wasn't like he had gotten any apologies from his father in that last evening they had together.

 _"I hope now, you can understand everything, Adrien,"_ his father had said as they ate what they hadn't known at the time was their last meal together, _"You must know now why I did this. My only regret is to have failed to bring your mother back to us."_

He couldn't help but wonder what the conversation would have been like if his father knew he was Chat Noir. Already there were no apologies. Were there any changes in the last year to put things in perspective? Now that Adrien had gained his own resolve, did he want to be roped back into the cycle of what he knew now was abuse as his father's final revenge?

Yes, he had imagined everything, and yet he still found the breath taken from his lungs when that curtain was pulled back, and he laid eyes on a white room, the light momentarily blinding him from the almost total darkness he had been in before.

He noticed a couple prison wardens enter the room with him, and Adrien found himself unsure if his father could see him or if it was only one-way.

It was jarring, to say the least, to see his normally elegant and always-in-control father strapped to a gurney with three IVs attached to his arms. Adrien knew exactly what the three were and what they did. Sodium thiopental, a barbiturate anesthetic, which was supposed to induce deep unconsciousness in about twenty seconds. Pancuronium bromide, a total muscle relaxant that, given insufficient dosages, paralyzes all voluntary muscles, thereby causing suffocation. And finally, potassium chloride, which induced irreversible cardiac arrest.

And for Adrien, it was as though his senses completely turned off. He felt like he was in a dark hole, falling like he had been punched in the stomach. He felt like fainting. Maybe even sobbing, but he couldn't process the thing before him that turned everything on its head. But he reminded himself of his promise to not cry, and he wiped away the tears he had not yet wept.

He felt a sense of both relief and disappointment that it did not seem his father was being granted the chance at last words. But perhaps what actually happened was worse, for his father's head to turn to him with something between fear and anger.

Force of habit coming back at seeing even the tiniest bit of anger, Adrien looked down and noticed his black button-up shirt was not aligned. It was one button off. He bit his lip and pulled his beige jacket closed, and when he looked up again, he noticed he had missed that moment the life left his father's eyes.

Had... Had that been intentional? To make him not look? Had it been an accident?

Of course, the execution was not quite over yet until the rise and fall of his father's chest ceased moments later, and he was announced dead. 

Adrien screamed.

He screamed. While the words he said at the press conference that the prison staff brought him to was nothing but lies bred purely to abort the last of the suspicion on himself, the initial scream which had coated that tiny room in hundreds of emotions was dreadfully not.

Rage, despair, regret, even a morbid weight off his shoulders at the idea if he was finally free, even the darkest of thoughts in the back of his mind. All of it swirled around in his mind as he signed the document confirming he had seen the execution, knowing full well he would never be able to get it out from behind his eyes as he forced his way through the rest of the media.

"Adrien!" Alya ran over to him, her phone in his face, "Is it true Gabriel Agreste was executed? I have to get this scoop!"

He glared at her, knowing that grabbing her by the throat and strangling her here was not the right thing to do both ethically and logically, so he instead shoved her out of his way and ignored everyone.

Uncanny Valley was waiting for him, "Hello, Adrien. Allow me to take you to your hotel room."

He hesitantly took her hand, holding on as she launched into the air with enough speed that nobody could follow him.

When he entered his hotel room from the balcony, he was not shocked at all to see Marinette sitting on his bed, looking through his computer. This was not the first and doubtfully the last time he had seen her coming into his room and peeking around at his private stuff without his permission. He had thought it was normal until Felix explained that it was anything but and Marinette was an actual stalker.

She looked up, "Oh, Adrien! I'm so glad you're here," she went to try and hug him, but he put his hand up, showing that no form of contact was welcome. Not that it mattered, he supposed. He would only ever be seen as a piece of meat. _Thanks, Gabriel._

"What were you looking at this time, Marinette?" He groaned, looking at his laptop to see that his search history and his email was open.

Marinette tensed, realizing that he knew about her less-than-ethical behavior, "I was just unblocking Nino in your contacts. He wanted to check and see if you were okay, maybe explain some things."

"Why are you here?" He asked tiredly, "I already made it clear I didn't want to see any of you again."

"Adrien..." she sat next to him, "I swear, we didn't do this to hurt you—"

"Then why did nobody decide to let Chat Noir in on your secret meetings?" He locked down his computer and got up, "Was it because they were allowed to know each other's identities, but I have to always ben in the dark?"

"That..." Marinette trailed off, "And because you seemed to believe Gabriel could change. We were all worried about you, Adrien, and that you would be abused even further once your father was an announced villain. None of us knew the death penalty—"

"I thought you hated lies, Marinette," he narrowed his eyes, knowing he was being harsh, but he had months of anger built up, and it was a struggle given he had watched his own father die a mere couple of hours ago. "I told you _repeatedly_ what would happen, and until you learned I was Adrien, you didn't listen. It's as simple as that."

"Adrien..." she trailed off and then pulled out a box Adrien was very familiar with, "It's not the same without you, kitty. I know I should have offered this to you months ago, but what do you say?"

He looked down at the box, which for years had been his only source of freedom. Then he looked up at Marinette, and then Tikki, who emerged from behind her,

"Come on, Adrien," the kwami encouraged, "We all miss you, even Plagg!"

He went to take the box, to see Plagg again, his truest friend, who hadn't turned on him. Sure, he had Kagami and Luka, the only two people in Paris who didn't know his identity as Chat Noir and still hadn't turned on him. Still, it just wasn't the same since he couldn't see them without the crowds in the streets, which had once been full of adoring fans, trying to kill him outright or beat him into the ground since they didn't get a chance at Gabriel.

But then he stopped, as he considered what this would mean, and he bowed his head, "I can't accept this."

That clearly caught Marinette off-guard, "What? Why?!"

"I'm sorry. I already told you that I needed time, and seeing as the last time we talked, you were clearly angry I didn't adore you anymore when we were Chat Noir and Ladybug, I can't trust you to respect my boundaries."

"Not like you ever respected mine," Marinette snapped back, suddenly getting angry, "I'm giving you a second chance. You should be grateful!"

"Not today, Marinette!" He shouted, breaking down in tears, which he once again wiped away, "I watched my father _die_ today, no thanks to you, and now you just want me back, so I'm grateful to you? I am sorry for being so clingy, but I never treated you like something to be ogled at. I can't say the same." He turned away and hugged himself, "I'll think about talking to Nino, but I don't think it's a good idea for us to be working together. For Paris' sake, find a new partner."

Whether it was crocodile tears or not, Adrien didn't know as he heard Marinette crying, "I—I can't do this without you. The last year hasn't been the same!"

He dug his nails into his palms. Even with all his anger, and the rejections, and the invasions of space, his heart still broke, hearing his lady's cries. But if he turned around, he knew he would run back into her arms and become Chat Noir again.

He wanted to see Plagg again, with all his heart. But he had to remind himself that if he wanted to see Plagg, he would need to be tied back into a relationship he knew now, thanks to his cousin's advice, was unhealthy and downright toxic.

 _"Be happy, kitten,"_ one of the last things Plagg had said to him, _"Don't let the world get you down."_

_I'm sorry, Plagg. I let the world get me down._

"Marinette, please leave," he whispered, "I need to be alone." 

She looked up with wide eyes before whispering, "Tikki, spots on," and vanishing into New York City.

Adrien opened his computer and went to reblock Nino. He didn't hate Nino by any means, as he was sure that unlike Marinette or Alya, who could have other motives, Nino probably did just want Adrien to be safe. He had made an agreement with Nino to not talk to each other for a while, and the only reason the block had happened was to stay out of "therapeutic group chats" made by Alya.

He noticed an email from Nino, and he read it.

_Adrien,_

_I know we agreed not to talk, but I know your Dad's execution was today, and I just want to let you know my deepest condolences. I regret being part of this—I have always been against the death penalty. But that is no excuse for the choice I made, and no apology will make things go back to normal between us, so all I can give you is an explanation and take accountability for what I had done._

_I wanted to follow our agreement, but I was terrified that Gabriel would take out his anger of losing on you. I know we were keeping watch over the house just in case, but you're my best friend, and I would rather throw away our friendship if it means you are safe from Gabriel and Nathalie. She's only doing a life sentence since she wasn't an international criminal, right?_

_I know you probably never want to see me again, even if you just said you needed some time. I am fine with that, but I needed to give you a final goodbye and let you know I will always be here if you need me._

_Truly sorry,_

_Nino_

Adrien felt a bitter smile on his face as he decided not to put the block back in place, but he also didn't respond to the email, not yet.

That look in his father's eyes before death flashed into his mind, and he quickly fixed the buttons on his shirt as he hadn't been able to before. And by the time he was able to get himself together, he saw in the reflection of his now-asleep laptop, his father behind him. He spun around, only to see it was his own reflection in the mirror, and he sighed, tearing at his hair.

Out of boredom and perhaps morbid curiosity, he searched up his father's execution online, and already his interview with the press came up. He sighed, and he kept scrolling, seeing to his horror, many people vouching that as Gabriel's conspirator, Nathalie should also be put to death, and possibly Adrien himself, because what if he was working with them.

He jumped when he heard a knock on the door, and these articles and blog posts added to the attacks he had already undergone made his paranoia skyrocket. He grabbed the bible out from the hotel drawer, ready to swing at the attacker who apparently had a key card. 

He stopped himself just in time to see it was Felix, who smiled a bit. Adrien's eyes wandered to the ring his cousin wore, matching the one he had now. The Graham de Vanily Twin rings were back in the family.

Aunt Amelie said they were special, but Adrien still could not figure out what made them so. Perhaps they were the reason he had survived so many attempts on his life.

Felix softened when he noticed Adrien, holding out his arms, knowing the pain of losing a father, and he brought Adrien in for an embrace.

Unable to hold back the waterworks anymore, Adrien began to sob, clinging to his cousin like he was the only good thing left on Earth.

"I don't know what to do anymore," he hiccuped a few times and took in greedy gulps of air, and Felix just held him, letting Adrien punch his chest and cry out all his pain.

"I know," was all Felix could say, but an acknowledgment of his pain and a loving embrace was all Adrien needed right now.

Nobody knew what happened to Adrien after that. The French Miraculous Team did know that he had gone back to London to live with his family, officially Adrien Graham de Vanily. 

But then, after three weeks of the biggest news being Gabriel's execution and people believing Adrien was not innocent like he was making them think, Luka was given the call from Felix that Adrien had been missing for days. He needed help finding his lost cousin.

The search went on for months, but there was no trace of Adrien at all, not even a report of anyone matching his description anywhere around the time he vanished. No body had been found, and no notes were left behind explaining his whereabouts. His bank account had been emptied, and Max was still searching for where the money had gone exactly.

The only thing they could ever find was a pair of Adrien's shoes in front of the railing of the Westminster Bridge. 

But no amount of theories or investigations brought to light exactly what happened to the son of Hawk Moth.


End file.
